Monday, 25 July 2016

Disappearance at Devil's Rock

Disappearance at Devil’s
Rock is the new novel from Paul Tremblay and is published by Titan Books. Having
been thoroughly impressed with Paul’s previous novel A Headful of Ghosts, I was eagerly anticipating this new book,
curious as to whether the incredibly high standard set in that tale of
(possible) demonic possession would be maintained.

It has. Oh yes. Very much.

This time, the story focuses on the disappearance of
Elizabeth Sanderson’s son, Tommy, at the titular landmark. Actually, the huge
boulder is actually called Split Rock – because of a fracture running the
length of it – its more sinister name arising from a local legend. This duality
is one of the many themes running through this skilfully constructed narrative
in which nothing is what it appears to be. The rock is appropriately located in
a park called Borderland, a name which sums up in a nutshell the whole concept
of the book. Featuring a group of young boys as protagonists, this can be read
as a coming of age story – the borderland between childhood and adulthood – and
within its pages the natural and supernatural worlds abut with each other.

The plot of Disappearance
at Devil’s Rock unfolds gradually, with the author slowly revealing its
twists and turns. A hefty dose of ambiguity is mixed in, constantly
wrong-footing the reader. It’s evidence of great skill and technique (also a
feature of A Headful of Ghosts), leading
the reader towards an understanding and then pulling the rug from beneath their
feet. It’s a technique deserving of its own name. I suggest a “Tremblay”.
(Whoa! The author really pulled a Tremblay there!)

The story is told via the recollections of Tommy’s friends Josh
and Luis who were with him on the night of his disappearance and also by pages
torn from Tommy’s own diary which appear mysteriously in Elizabeth’s house. (Or
do they?) Through these testimonies we are introduced to Arnold, an older boy
who befriends the trio and who may – or may not be – directly connected to
Tommy’s disappearance. The police are involved of course, investigating the
incident, and the closing chapters of the book consist of transcripts of their
interviews – a brilliant way of doing things as it allows the reader to make up
their own mind as to what exactly has happened. Or, at least, attempting to. It’s
a case of picking out the least unreliable narrator.

Disappearance at Devil’s
Rock truly is a great piece of writing. It’s a journey into the darkness
that lies around and within us all, creeping into the reader’s subconscious,
primal fears much like the dark figure spotted by the eye-witnesses in the book
creeps around the neighbourhood. I anticipate much discussion over the final
scenes of the book, and in particular the final line but I loved it, gave a
small cheer as I read it. (Not out loud of course…)

I honestly believe we’re entering a golden age of horror/dark/weird
fiction and Disappearance at Devil’s Rock
is a fine piece of evidence to support that hypothesis. I recommend it highly.